Dancing in the Year of the Dog

Posted by admin on Feb 7, 2006 in News | 0 comments

Keefer Street is closed to cars today, but the road is by no means empty. Hundreds of people line the sidewalk and spill over onto the street, creating a long kaleidoscope of all ages and ethnicities. In the distance a drum is pulsing and a gong clashing, together setting the rhythm for the marchers in the Chinese New Years Parade in downtown Vancouver. The sulphur smell of firecrackers wafts above the crowd. As the parade dances closer, the bobbing heads of bouncing lions become visible. Flags of red and pink, orange and fluorescent green ripple gently in the wind. Many different groups are represented in the parade: the Chinese senior’s association, a group of Boy Scouts, a Brazilian dance troupe, to name a few. It seems like the entire Vancouver International Village has come out to celebrate 2006, the Year of the Dog. The animal for the year is determined by the traditional Chinese calendar. Unlike most other calendars, it does not count years in an infinite sequence, but instead uses names that are repeated every 60 years. Within each 60-year cycle, each year is assigned a name consisting of two components: a Celestial Stem and a Terrestial Branch. The Terrestrial Branch is based on the zodiac cycle of 12 animals, making this year’s animal the dog. After an hour or so of watching the happy troops walk by, we wander over to the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden on Carrall Street. As we enter the garden, we are given Lai-See Envelopes containing chocolate toonies. Traditionally, money is placed in these envelopes and given to children and young adults at New Year’s time. This garden, built in 1985-86 according to the style of the original Ming dynasty gardens, is the first full-sized classical Chinese garden outside of China. It is meant to be a place of serenity, but the object of the garden is to capture all the elements of the natural landscape–mountains, rivers, lakes, trees, valleys, hills–and, by bringing them together in a small space, to concentrate the life force, the qi, that animates them. Inside the garden, the open air is filled with the sounds of a Chinese violin. The jade-coloured water matches the surrounding trees. For the New Year, the Garden offers a Tai Chi demonstration, as well as calligraphy and traditional crafts demonstrations. The Garden is open regularly Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00a.m. to 4:30p.m.